No one eating plan works for everyone, especially when you're considering the best diets for maintaining a healthy weight, aiding your mental health and overall energy differ from lifestyle to life stage. Throw environmental concerns into the mix and the waters muddy further.

But now there's a diet designed to help both your body and the plant and although it includes plenty of plant-based meals it doesn't suggest you only eat kale and tofu.

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A new report in the Lancet medical journal commissioned by the Eat Forum NGO has developed guidelines on the most nutrient-dense foods for a world with an ever growing population and, in turn, shared a diet that could best feed the billions of humans for generations to come.

Enter, the planetary health diet, which—surprisingly—includes both meat and dairy.

What is the Planetary Health Diet?

Put together by 37 experts in the areas of climate change, nutrition and farming from around the world, the planetary health diet is a new way to eat which promises to offer the best diet for both you and the environment.

It recommends you eat 2,500 calories a day and, although largely plant-based, does include meat and dairy.

In an ideal planetary health world, portion wise, your options would look like the following over the course of week:

Red meat: The equivalent of a single burger (or a big steak every four weeks) (14g a day)

Chicken: A couple of portions of chicken (29g a day)

Fish: A couple of portions of fish (28g a day)

The rest of your protein, of which the NHS advises women should eat 45g a day, should come from plants. Researchers working on the planetary health approach recommend:

Nuts (50g a day)

Legumes like beans, chickpeas and lentils (75g a day)

Plus, each plate of food you eat should be made up of at least half fruit and veg. Think:

But be careful—although eating lots of fruit and veg is advised, scientists warn watching your intake of starchier vegetables.

Starchy vegetables, like potatoes (50g a day)

If you're wondering about carbohydrates, you should eat a similar amount to the amount of fruit and veg you're eating.

Whole grains, like bread and rice (232g a day)

And, finally, when it comes to milk, yoghurt and the humble egg, scientists advise trying to limit, similarly to starchy vegetables and meat. Aim for:

Eggs: One and a bit (13g a day)

Dairy: The equivalent of one glass of milk for the whole week (250g a day)

Plus, you can have:

Sugar (31g a day)

Oils, like olive oil (50g a day)

Speaking to the BBC about the dietary approach, Professor Walter Willet, one of the researchers who contributed to the study and who works at Harvard University, said the approach actually offers 'tremendous variety'.

He expands: 'You can take those foods and put them together in thousands of different ways. We're not talking about a deprivation diet here, it is healthy eating that is flexible and enjoyable.'

It's a big change, and one that would see Europe and the rest of the world have to pretty drastically cut back on the about of red meat they are consuming at current.

But, taxes on red meat are one of the many suggested ways researchers are recommending people are inspired to approach the change.

What will adopting the planetary health diet do?

As the world population increases, experts are warning your eating habits will need to change in order for the planet to keep up.

World population currently sits at 7.7 billion, with that mammoth figure predicted to hit 10 billion in the year 2050.

Experts commissioned for the EAT-Lancet project predict that, if adopted, the diet could prevent around 11 million deaths every year. That's a lot.

Why? Well, they're forecasting that the change would reduce diet-related diseases such as cancer and strokes, plus decrease the levels greenhouse gases produced by mass farming. Did you know? Farming is currently accountable for around a quarter of global warming emissions, which is significantly more than transport, such as trains, planes and buses.

Plus, as has been widely reported, livestock is responsible for between 15 and 18% of greenhouse gas emissions, and by reducing your meat intake, you will be, in turn, largely reducing your methane and nitrous oxide footprint.

So, in short, eating more veg and less dairy and meat, as the Planetary Health Diet guidelines recommend, could:

Save water supplies

Reduce greenhouse gas emissions

Stop unnecessary farmland expansion

Feed significantly more people

Improve general health and wellbeing

Scientists are also hoping the approach will encourage people too:

Reduce food waste

Increase the amount of food produced on current farmland.

So, what do you think? Do you eat similarly to this approach now or would the change be a big step for you? Get in touch @womenshealthuk and let us know what you think. Remember—you may not think you're having an impact, but small changes make all the difference.

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